The Strangest Things
by Zammie4eva
Summary: Harry needs time alone after the war, but when he runs into an unusual scene in the Forbidden Forest, he has the chance to finally get to know his old enemy. The strangest thing is, he doesn't mind. Nor does Draco. drarry super fluff, Draco OOCness, pre-relationship. Part 2 is up! Go check out The Strangest Things: The Second Edition


The forest seemed a lot quieter than he remembered it to be. It was honestly a little disconcerting, but Harry conceded that the Battle of Hogwarts had been barely three months ago, the creature of the Forbidden Forest must have been driven away by the fighting. It could take a while for them to return, and in the meantime Harry would be using it to escape from the castle.

It wasn't often that Harry left everything behind him in an angry flurry and just walked into a deadly forest. It was just, after the war, he'd been thinking an awful lot, and he found that he couldn't really stand being around anyone anymore. At least not right now.

He understood that people were happy things were back to normal, but they were just so...happy. Almost ridiculously so. Maybe he was envious that he couldn't latch onto that same happiness, or maybe he was angry no one was taking their losses and the horrors seriously anymore. No, Ron still woke up with nightmares, just as he did. It wasn't that the nightmare didn't exist, it's just that it was over. People didn't want to think about it, at least for a while they could pretend all was well – which it was – and they could recover and get on with their lives.

So why couldn't he?

He was stuck in time it seemed, reliving the same horrors ever time he closed his eyes. He'd seen so much death and suffering that it seemed wrong to him to just...move on. Like it was an insult to those they lost to just get over it. He didn't want to talk about the war either, no one wanted to voice it, but he just wanted someone to understand, to feel like he did.

He was so melancholy, maybe because he'd lost nearly everyone he'd cared about. Even his owl was dead. His friends were all getting together and staying together, wanting to feel something real after such a horrendous time, but Harry was distancing himself and pushing them away. He just wanted to sit in the dark for a while. Maybe he just needed time.

So he'd come here, to escape the happy people and be alone to think. He knew this part of the forest pretty well, he'd come here with Luna to feed the Thestrils sometimes, and he thought a mundane task like watching them would calm him. So he approached the clearing he knew they liked to haunt, and noticed that a blonde figure was already there feeding them. It must be Luna.

Harry went to call out to her, when he looked closer, and saw it wasn't the long-haired Ravenclaw, but the blonde Slytherin who he detested. Draco Malfoy. Trying not to make any noise, he stepped closer through the trees. Draco had hung his cloak on a tree branch was was standing with his shirt sleeves rolled half-way up his arms and he tie loosened, holding out the raw meat for the Thestril he was at that moment feeding. He pet the creature's muzzle and offered it another piece.

"It's sad really," he said, causing Harry to freeze on the spot. "That such gentle creatures are so feared because of their association with death. Don't you think?"

Harry opened his mouth, then closed it. Draco's eyes flickered up to where he was standing, then went back to feeding the Thestril. Finally Harry spoke.

"Not just anyone can see them," he said stupidly.

"True," Draco agreed. "It's also sad that the only ones who can see them are people who have also witnessed terrible things."

He turned then, and looked up at Harry. The Thestril playfully bit down on his shoulder, and he laughed and gave the creature his attention again, scratching its muzzle affectionately.

"Alright alright, I'm getting you more." he said with a smile. "Call back down your baby, this one's not dangerous, just a little dim."

The Thestril called to its foal as Draco went to a little bag of meat to get more food for them. He tossed a piece at Harry, who caught it at the last second. He gave a tiny smirk and went back to feeding the creatures. Eventually the foal approached Harry shyly, and Harry bent down to feed it, patting its head a little awkwardly.

"He likes you," Draco said. "It took me weeks to get him to come near me."

"You come here often then," Harry guessed.

"Every day, around this time. This is the only way I get any peace. I don't know why I came back to this hell hole," Draco said with a small scowl.

"Why did you come back?" Harry found himself curious.

Draco sighed. "Long story. I won't bore you with the details. Anyway, what brings you here Hero?"

Harry wrinkled his nose at the title. "Same as you. Wanted peace,"

"You?" Draco looked back at him in surprise. "What, get tired of being followed around by adoring groupies? Yes I can see how one would need peace from that,"

Harry glared and stood up. "For your information I – no, you're not even worth it. Right well, I'm leaving."

As he turned and walked up the hill, Draco called out.

"Wait, don't go."

Harry turned. "Why?"

"I...don't have many people to talk to these days. At least you're someone," Draco admitted, going a little red in the cheeks.

Harry considered. He shrugged. "Okay." he came back and sat against a tree, watching as Draco fed the Thestrils the last pieces of meat.

"They seem to like you a lot," he commented.

"We're alike in a lot of ways. They seem to understand that," Draco replied.

"Alike? How?"

"We're both associated with death and destruction, and people fear and hate us," Draco said with a dark look. "Thestrils aren't so bad once you learn to see past that."

"Like you?" Harry guessed.

"Well." Draco stopped short. "I'm not sure what I'd call myself. I'm not good, I know that. But...I'm not bad either. Am I?" he turned back to Harry, but seemed to think better of it and turned away. "Stupid question," he muttered. "I already know the answer to that."

"I'm not sure I do," Harry admitted.

Draco raised an eyebrow at him in question.

"The Draco Malfoy I used to know would insult a Hipogriff then complain to his father when it attacked him, not feed and defend a creature like a Thestril." Harry went on. "Plus I think you've only thrown one insult at me so far, and it wasn't even a very good one."

Draco smirked a little. "Think I've just gone soft,"

Harry cracked a smile. "Maybe."

There was a moment of silence between them, but it wasn't uncomfortable. Draco finished his feeding and sat next to Harry, both watching the Thestrils play in the clearing.

"It seems a little warped doesn't it? That it's over. And everyone's just pretending it never happened." Draco murmured.

"That's what I've been thinking." Harry agreed. "I suppose we shouldn't dwell on it forever but..."

"It seems wrong to just forget," Draco finished.

"Yeah."

There was a pause.

"I almost forgot you came back to be honest, you're so quiet I barely noticed you." Harry said.

"Good. I'd like to keep it that way. The less I'm noticed the less I can get hexed in the halls," Draco replied. "It's been a very long time since I could hold my head high walking through the castle. I used to look _down _on those people. And now they throw things and I cower in the shadows in guilt."

Draco sighed, wrapping his arms around his knees. "It's bad enough for the other Slytherins, the hate we get now, but it's worse when you're a Death Eater. And a _Malfoy _at that. That name's a curse now."

"Why did you come back?" Harry asked. "If you knew it would be like this?"

"Because. I don't have a future." Draco said simply.

Harry titled his head to one side, not understanding. Draco sighed and looked at him.

"When I was a kid, my future had already been decided for me. I was to be the perfect student, the perfect son, the perfect Slytherin. When I was old enough I'd marry a girl from a noble family of my Father's choosing and continue the line through my own son, who would be raised as I was. When the war broke out, my future became different. Become a Death Eater, serve the Dark Lord, don't die. I figured if we won, I'd be killed by the Dark Lord, and if we lost, I'd be killed by the Order. Either way, I knew I wasn't getting out of it. And now that I have..."

He trailed away, looking over the trees up at the sky.

"You don't know what comes next," Harry said softly.

"That's what scares me." Draco admitted. "My life is mine to decide on now, I've never made a decisions in my life, was never allowed to. I don't know what to do, what's right or wrong. I'm branded for life now, a Death Eater and member of a family who stood with the Dark Lord. I'm lucky they even let me back into Hogwarts with that kind of record. I'm not sure what kind of future I even have now,"

Harry bristled. "They can't define you from that thing on your arm," he said gesturing at the Mark marring Draco's pale flesh. "It's not like you wanted it. I know how that psycho thinks, either join or die. It's not your fault, I wouldn't have wanted to die either."

"But you did." Draco said, eyes flicking back to Harry's furious face. "You were willing. And you did. That's the difference between us. If I was you, I would have fought back, I would have done anything to get out of there. But I didn't. I _did _choose this. I was a coward and chose my life over the right thing. I was too afraid to stand for the right side and I chose the only option that would keep me and my family safe. If I wasn't weak and cowardly, I would done something stupid and heroic like you."

Harry's face went red. "You shouldn't compare us," he muttered in embarrassment.

"And why not? You know I'm right."

"Because we're two different people. And I know you don't think that about yourself," Harry argued.

Draco raised his eyebrows.

"You wanted to keep your family safe. Your Father had already displeased Voldemort, to keep your parents safe you joined him to try and make amends. If you had of run away they would have been killed, and another orphan would have been created. I'm the one that ran away, when things got bad I ran _away._"

"To stop the Dark Lord," Draco said stubbornly.

"But self-preservation came first. I left the people I cared about most to their fate when the Death Eaters came for us. Even though I knew if I was caught it would all be over, I still fled instead of fought. That's a lot less noble than what you did,"

Draco looked at a loss for words for a moment.

"You are Harry Potter right?" he checked.

Harry grinned. "Is it so hard to believe I'm defending you?"

"...Yes." Draco said. "You have no reason to. I tried to _kill _you,"

"And _I _almost killed _you_," Harry reminded him.

Draco's hand went unconsciously to his chest, where Harry was sure scars remained from that horrible spell.

"The truth is," Harry started. "Is that I don't have the energy to hate anymore. I've seen the damage hating does. The last time I saw you, you were faced with an impossible task without the heart to do it. You were shaking with fear and on the brink of tears, because you're a _good _person."

Draco looked stunned for a second. "You were there?"

"Under my Invisibility Cloak." Harry told him. "And even before that, I saw you in ways I never had before. It made me realise something,"

"Realise what?"

"That there's always two sides of a story. The Draco Malfoy I had grown up knowing was just a git for no reason. But that's only because that's who you were trying to pretend to be, and that's what you showed the rest of the world. In our last year I realised I never knew your side of the story, of the hardships you were also dealing with. I can't hate someone for being too afraid to be who they really are." Harry said. "I don't know much about pure-blood houses, but Sirius told me what it was like growing up in his family. I imagine it wasn't too different from yours, you had expectations to fill and you were just desperate to do that."

Draco smirked. "It's clear you've been thinking about this a lot."

"I have," Harry admitted with a embarrassed chuckled. "Hermione says I have this obsession with you."

"Oh really? I'm flattered," Draco said, a teasing grin on his face.

"I just mean that I wanted to approach you last year, try and I dunno, help maybe, and I wanted to this year but you avoid everyone so much there's been no opportunity."

"Aw, the Chosen One's getting flustered because of little old me," Draco chuckled. "This is golden."

"I take it back, you're still a git," Harry muttered, cheeks as red as beet.

Draco laughed. He stood up and dusted off his pants. "Cute. Real cute Hero."

Harry grumbled to himself as Draco called down a Thestril and went about petting it.

"As horrible as my life has been, I can't imagine yours is any better." he said not looking at Harry. "My expectations were to simply hate everyone that wasn't me and to be perfect. Yours was saving the entire world. We're like two complete extremes, but we're also very similar."

"Seems like you've been thinking about this a lot too," Harry challenged, trying to fluster Draco like he'd done him.

But Draco only smiled, mirth in his eyes. "Maybe I have. After all, a Malfoy always studies their enemies closely. And I've had ample time to study you I think."

He went to collect his cloak from the tree. "You've changed,"

"I have?" Harry looked up bemusedly.

"You're not as happy." Draco seemed unhappy with that fact. "I used to look at you and _hate _you so much, because no matter what was going on or how bad your life got, you were always smiling. You don't smile anymore."

"That annoyed you?" Harry asked.

"It used to infuriate me. Looking at you I saw someone who's life was just so much better than mine. You didn't have a family but you had friends that actually liked you, mine were just power-hungry Slytherins from lower households. You were better than me in nearly every subject without even trying, you were famous before you even stepped foot in Hogwarts, and you did things that were so incredible, even in our first year, that dwarfed any achievement I could ever get. But what angered me the most was how happy you always looked, like nothing could remove your smile. I wanted that. I wanted that happiness that you had. Theoretically I should have been happier than you, I had everything I needed provided for me, but there was no happiness in my life, however privileged. You had so little yet cherished it so much that any little thing made you happy, and I was envious of that."

Draco scoffed. "Once I would have given anything to see something wipe that smile off your face. But now that it has...I don't like it. It makes me sad."

"Why?" Harry asked standing up too.

"I'm not sure exactly. Maybe because it gave me hope that I could smile like that too one day, and now there's no hope." Draco said thoughtfully. "Either way, it makes me sad to see you so sad when you should be happy. You're not meant to be sad."

"And you think you're not meant to be happy,"

"I'm a Malfoy. There's no such thing as happy where I come from. But...one good thing about losing a war...is that I can try and break away from my family. I want to change this name. My family is suffering, and I want to help them. Mother most of all, I think she's the one I've taken for granted the most. And who knows? Maybe one day I can smile like Harry Potter, even if I have nothing." Draco gave a warm smile, something Harry had never seen him do, and started to walk back up the hill.

"Hey Malfoy!" Harry called to him. "Does that mean we can be friends now?"

Draco laughed. "Why not? Stranger things have happened." he called back. "But if were going to be friends, I insist you call me Draco."

With that he disappeared into the trees, and Harry stood there a long time, thinking. Then, a big grin made its way onto his face, and he marched back to the castle with an excitement he hadn't felt in a long time.


End file.
